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Friday, May 9, 2014

The brokerage firm with which one affiliates should not be based on the name more so than the fit. Once an gent has determined what area of real estate they would like to practice, the amount of support they feel they will need and the affiliation terms that will be acceptable, then the search for the appropriate firm will be easier.

There are advantages and disadvantages of affiliating with franchises or locally owned companies. An advantage of going with a franchise would be the networking system among all of the franchises nationwide. A disadvantage would be the likelihood that a franchise fee will be required in addition to your monthly fees.

Affiliating with locally owned companies has advantages and disadvantages as well. An advantage could be the lack of having to pay franchise fees. Another advantage would be that the company can brand itself as the local authority. A disadvantage could be decreased name recognition.

Either way, an agent's success will be based more on the agent's efforts than the company's efforts. Be sure to affiliate with a firm that will line up with your business goals. Finding the right company is much more important than going after a name.

It can be beneficial to obtain your loan originator license. However, it is a licensed position now which requires pre-license education, testing, license fees and continuing education. Although one can hold both a real estate salesperson license and a loan originator license, it needs to be understood that one cannot work on any deals where the potential buyer is being represented for the real estate acquisition as well as the financing. As long as one keeps the two separate, then it can work. It is absolutely vital that real estate professionals avoid creating conflicts of interest.

Holding a loan originator license would position one to more informed to the public. However, since one would be restricted in practice, having the additional license would not necessarily help the real estate business per se. One way it could help would be in the fact that clients/customers would view the agent as a greater resource.

It can be a great benefit to hold real estate licenses in several states. It can be a very expensive proposition to do as well. It needs to be kept in mind that license fees will have to be paid in all the states. Continuing education requirements will need to be met in all the states. Brokerage firm affiliation fees will have to paid. And so on and so on.

Unless you spend a lot of time in another state or have a strong client base there, it would be better to concentrate on making referrals. There are agents who are licensed in more than one state, but usually the other state(s) borders Georgia. These agents travel back and forth easily and often doing business.

If the other state in which to be licensed is further away, then one really needs to consider if it will be financially feasible.